Muslim preacher's wife killed, 4 others injured in Zamboanga attack

ZAMBOANGA CITY, Philippines (Mindanao Examiner / January 6, 2010) – Gunmen killed the wife of a Muslim preacher and injured him and three others in an attack in the southern Philippine port city of Zamboanga, police said Wednesday.

Police said two gunmen opened fire on the preacher’s house in San Ramon village late Tuesday, killing the woman instantly. The couple’s daughter and a niece and another woman were injured in the shooting.

“We are still investigating the shooting. Villagers reported seeing a van which served as a back-up to the two attackers,” a police officer, Said Tutuan, said.

No group or individual claimed responsibility for the attack, but police is investigating reports that the killing could be connected to a clan war.

Last week, gunmen also shot and wounded a village chieftain, Lito Atienza, in an attack in Capisan village.

Clan war or locally known as “rido”, is common in many parts of the southern Philippines. The U.S. Agency for International Development and think tank Asia Foundation have said more than 3,000 people have been killed over the past seven decades in family feuds in the southern Philippines.

Rido can involve disputes among family members or among two or more rival families, pitting neighbors or different ethnic groups against each other. The disputes center on issues of land, money, marriage or political power and involve revenge killing.

The violence increases with each act of retaliation, broadening to include those not directly involved in the dispute, including women and children, according to the Asia Foundation, adding, some feuds lasted for decades.

Summary killings are also common in Zamboanga and hundreds had been killed over the past years. (Mindanao Examiner)